Wreckage of Sala and Ibbotson plane washed away
THE WRECKAGE of the plane carrying footballer Emiliano Sala and pilot David Ibbotson has washed away, an inquest has heard.
The 28-year-old Argentinian striker died when the plane he was travelling in crashed north of Guernsey on 21 January 2019.
His body was recovered on 6 February and a post-mortem examination was carried out, but the body of the 59-year-old pilot was never found.
A pre-inquest review held in Bournemouth heard that the family of Mr Sala organised for a further sonar survey of the crash site on 22 October but found that the wreckage was no longer there, apart from a few smaller parts.
Matthew Reeve, representing the family, said they took the decision to carry out the search after the Air Accidents Investigation Branch decided it was not necessary to revisit the crash scene or recover the wreckage.
'The family disagree with the decision not to salvage the wreckage,' he said.
'The aircraft wreckage is no longer present near to the location and some debris likely to be remains of the aircraft may not remain in place very long.'
Coroner Rachel Griffin asked the AAIB why the aircraft was not being recovered considering toxicology results from a post-mortem showed that Mr Sala had carbon monoxide in his bloodstream.
Senior inspector for the AAIB Geraint Herbert explained the AAIB felt it had identified safety issues without the need to further examine the crashed plane.
He said the safety of divers and the practicality of recovering the wreckage had to be taken into consideration and that it would not be possible to determine whether damage seen on the crashed plane would have occurred prior to the crash, during the impact or while under the water.
'We decided we wouldn't be going back and nothing I have heard subsequently has changed my mind,' he said.
Detective inspector of Dorset Police Simon Huxter said inquiries continued following the arrest earlier this year of a 64-year-old man from North Yorkshire on suspicion of manslaughter by an unlawful act but it has not reached a conclusion and therefore inquiries are continuing to establish whether there is evidence of criminality.
At the request of Mr Sala's family, the coroner called on the police to preserve any blood samples to ensure they can be made subject to further independent testing if needed and she will write to the pathologist Dr Basil Purdue to ask what led to further testing for carbon monoxide.
Mrs Griffin adjourned the proceedings for a further pre-inquest review on 16 March 2020 to enable the Civil Aviation Authority and the AAIB to conclude their investigations buy warned the inquest could be suspended if a criminal prosecution was to be launched. She extended her sympathies to the families of both men involved.
